Environment Minister Nick Smith has backed a call for more aerial drops of poison 1080 on Department of Conservation land.
Yesterday Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Jan Wright said it was the best way to protect native species from pests, and this morning Dr Smith said she was "absolutely right".
"If you're serious about saving our kiwi, the kereru, kokako, any number of our precious fauna, then 1080 is the most efficient tool for it," Dr Smith said on Firstline.
"Her criticism is that my department is spending too much of the budget on the monitoring and the reporting, which they're doing to try and satisfy opponents. But she sort of makes the point – and I think that it's a correct one – and that is that you could spend gazillions on trying to satisfy some of the ferocious opponents to 1080.
"It is not a scientific argument – it's almost just a gut reaction against poisons."
Dr Wright's report said 1080 was a "moderately humane" way to deal with pests, which was met with opposition from activists and even some MPs.
"I think the Parliamentary Commissioner is being short sighted," said United Future leader Peter Dunne.
"Very few people argue that 1080 is the ideal solution, and there have been constant calls over the years for more research to be done into viable alternatives."
And Gavin Emeny, from Wildlands Biodiversity Society, said it was an inhuman way to deal with pests.
"It kills everything from the ground up – insects, birds and animals. They die the most horrific death."
But Dr Smith says with Dr Wright's backing, he's looking to expand the area 1080 is used in.
"This year we're going to be doing a greater area of 1080 than last year, and her point is that we should look to spend less on the monitoring and reporting – which is about half the budget – and more on the doing.
"I think she's got a fair point, and we're going to follow up her report by having a fresh look at whether we can expand the area that we're doing so we can ensure that more of our native species are surviving."
And if this year's expansion is deemed successful, even more areas could be showered in 1080 in the future.
"There will be more areas controlled by DOC using aerial 1080 this year than last year, and maybe even more if we find that the advice is practical and that we can do still more again," says Dr Smith.
3 News
source: newshub archive
